Man Opens Door Mid-Flight: Passengers Share Terrifying Experience on Korean Asiana Airlines

2023.06.09 Fri posted at 20:30 JST

Seoul, South Korea (CNN) A man sitting next to a Korean Asiana Airlines passenger who allegedly opened the door during the flight recalled his feelings at the time.

“I just felt the fear of death. I thought I was going to die. This was the end for me.” Mr. Lee Yunjun reflected on his experience last month. The flight from Jeju Island to Daegu with Lee on board was scheduled to arrive in less than an hour.

“In panic movies, when the door opens in the middle of the flight, it looks like everyone is dead. I wondered if I had done anything wrong in my life. It was a brief event, but a lot of thoughts ran through my head.” I crossed.” (Mr. Lee)

Lee was watching a YouTube video on his cell phone when the door opened. A strong wind blew Ms. Li’s hat and headphones off, making it difficult for her to breathe.

Looking up, I saw a cloud where the emergency door should have been. Although we were approaching landing, we were still at an altitude of over 200 meters.

In Mr. Lee’s eyes, it looked like a desperate crisis was imminent.

When he looked at the man sitting next to him, he said, “He looked nervous,” and both he and Ms. Lee were “shaking with fear.”

“Looking at his feet, I noticed that his legs were shaking in the wind,” Lee said.

But at this point, I didn’t expect the man next to me to end up being charged.

Lee said he didn’t see the man open the door and initially thought it was a technical glitch.

An injured passenger being transported to a hospital in Daegu

But when the plane landed, the man next to him appeared to jump off the plane, which was still moving at high speed. It was a panic attack, Lee knew.

“I was looking at the flight attendant when I heard the passenger next to me unlock his seat belt. He was leaning towards the emergency exit,” Lee said.

As flight attendants called for help, Ms. Lee was able to subdue the man with the help of other passengers.

When the plane arrived at the airport, the police arrested a man in his 30s on suspicion of violating the Air Safety Law.

According to police, the man was in a bad state of mind and said he tried to get off early because he felt suffocated.

In retrospect, Lee remembers the entire flight as creepy. “From the time he boarded the plane, he was pale and had a bad mood. He was a little gloomy and restless, and he looked around and acted strangely.”

None of the 200 passengers were seriously injured, but nine complained of hyperventilation.

Asiana Airlines said an investigation into the incident is ongoing. Investigations are focused on why the man was able to open the door mid-flight.

South Korean plane doors open mid-flight, passengers look back in fear